I saw a meme where ladies were being compared to men when it came to packing for short trips and it was one hilarious but true meme. Psychology says that the men seem to pack less items while the ladies pack for a three day journey as if it was a three month journey.
Now the question is why? Do the ladies pack extra items for emergencies? or maybe they never seem to wrap their heads around what items they would really need? Or could it be that a majority of ladies do not agree with the 'less is more' theory. The answer could be anything.
However , I'm of the opinion that less is more and I'd love to throw a little spotlight on my early days walking the surface of the earth.
For the better part of childhood, my mom always packed my travel bags for me. We had this annual program every December and I was always so excited about it. At that age, I wasn't attending the programs to acquire knowledge, I was attending it to see my friends from all around the city and in the process show them a sneak peak of all the dresses and shoes my parents got me. You could call this gloating but I feel we've all been here at some point in our lives.
Due to this reason, I always brought out about half of the clothes in my wardrobe for my mom to pack. I'd have you know that this annual program usually lasts for the weekend and by Sunday evening we're on our merry way back. I noticed that my mom only picked out about five dresses from the one hundred dresses I gave her and that was it. Of course it wasn't delightful to travel with only five dresses when I had tons of dresses but I did anyway.
Along the line, during one of the programs, I was cladded with the opportunity to pack my own travelling bag. Boy was I excited! I knew I was going to pack the best and only the best. I went with three fully packed bags for a journey that required just a mini box on a normal day. My mom didn't seem to have any problem with it but the universe did.
Just like every other year, we commenced the journey with my mom on the driver's seat but this year was different. As we arrived at our destination, the vehicle we used broke down completely. It was night and we needed to get to our hotel quickly but the problem I had was my luggage. Every one had just a bag and I had three! How generous.
It felt like the universe whispered "you brought it upon yourself and now you have to take full responsibility". That night was terrible. I had never boarded a commercial taxi but that was my first. Other passengers in the taxi weren't ready to feel discomfort because a certain girl was too materialistic so they judiciously marked their territory. My mom and siblings on the other hand weren't seated close to me. So I had my three bags to myself. The three bags that were a thing of joy became a thing of torture.
We got to our hotel and I was already regretting my action. The beautiful part of the story is that I didn't even wear all the clothes I carried. So in essence, I was with unnecessary baggage. No one needed to tell me how or how not to pack the next year. This experience was one that made me believe that less is indeed more.
Extravagance can be amazing. The feeling and prestige that comes with it is top notch. To some people, it can be really exhilarating to be the centre of attraction but at what cost? In as much as extravagance is prestigious, my comfort and simplicity would always be on the top of my list.
Keeping it simple is really an easy thing to do. I spoke with someone a few months back and the person emphasised the essence of priorities. There would always be extra alluring things to add to our list but if we keep adding these things to our list, we'd end up feeling overwhelmed. It could be with friends, with hobbies, even with the food we eat. Setting priorities is something I can overemphasise because it's as easy as it comes.
Nonetheless, I always ask three questions before prioritising things in my life and I'd share the questions with you. "Is it good? Is it kind? Is it necessary?" If the answer to any of these questions is no, then that choice needs reconsidering.
Simply put, keeping things simple is always a better choice and there isn't any other way to go about it if not by getting our priorities straight. So whenever you feel overwhelmed about a situation, try revisiting your priorities.
All images used belong to me and were taken with my mobile device.
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